PubMed Health. A service of the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia [Internet]. Atlanta (GA): A.D.A.M.; 2013.
A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia.
Systemic means affecting the entire body, rather than a single organ or body part.
For example, systemic disorders such as high blood pressure or systemic diseases such as influenza affect the entire body.
An infection that is in the bloodstream is called a systemic infection.
An infection that affects only one body part or organ is called a localized infection.
Review Date: 1/21/2013.
Reviewed by: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Medical Director and Director of Didactic Curriculum, MEDEX Northwest Division of Physician Assistant Studies, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington. Also reviewed by A.D.A.M. Health Solutions, Ebix, Inc., Editorial Team: David Zieve, MD, MHA, David R. Eltz, Stephanie Slon, and Nissi Wang.
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is an independent audit to verify that A.D.A.M. follows rigorous standards of quality and accountability. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial policy, editorial process and privacy policy. A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch).
The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only — they do not constitute endorsementscof those other sites. © 1997–2011 A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.
Pharmacological interventions for pruritus in adult palliative care patients
Pruritus is the medical name for itching, which can be a problem in palliative care settings where treatments for cancer or severe kidney disease are being given. In this review we looked for high quality clinical trials of drug therapies to prevent or treat itching in palliative care. We found that 30 different drugs had been tested in 40 studies, involving 1286 people with itch. There was very little information about any particular drug treatment on which to base a trustworthy assessment of whether, or how well, the different drugs worked. There was enough information to point out some possibly useful treatments for particular causes of the itch. These included indomethacin for HIV‐associated itch, gabapentin and nalfurafine for itch associated with chronic kidney disease, and rifampicin and flumecinol for itch associated with liver problems. Paroxetine may be a drug of general relevance whatever the cause of the itching. The amount of information identified is too limited to say anything definite about harm. Research in palliative care is difficult and short term, but we need more good quality studies on preventing and treating itch (pruritis).
No proof found that depression is 'contagious'22 April 2013'Can you catch depression?', the Mail Online website asks on the strength of new US research into the concept of 'cognitive vulnerability'. Cognitive vulnerability is where unhelpful patterns of thin...
- SystemicSystemicPubMed Health
Your browsing activity is empty.
Activity recording is turned off.
See more...